A collection of contemporary songs, poetry and stories collected from and written about people and places along the Darling River, from Brewarrina to Menindee.

The river roads project came about from a series of conversations and observations between songwriter Tonchi Macintosh and poet, Andrew Hull, lamenting the lack of contemporary song and poetry originating in the Western Region.

Fire Stone by Andrew Hull & Tonchi Due for release soon! More>>

The Western division has a rich history of story telling, poetry and song. Names like Lawson, Ogilvie and Patterson are thrown around every day, and most people in the west are very familiar with the stories, sentiments and issues of their time, indeed, it could be argued that one of our most important ways of recording history has been poetry and song. Bush poetry recitals will tell and retell tales of dirt roads, hard men, terrible conditions, bush humour, love and power from over a hundred years ago.

What is so different now?

Are there no longer hardships in the bush? Is the west no longer hot and isolated? Are there are no more real characters or interesting anecdotes in the back country?
Obviously there are all these things but for some reason they are not recognized or told in song and poetry anymore. The stories of today need to be recorded to become the histories of the future, and contemporary poetry and song are a unique, interesting and entertaining way to do this.

Furthermore, what better way to promote the outback than to sing of its nature and characters? The 'river roads' project is the logical extension of the sealing of the Kidman Way, the increased push for tourism along the Darling (e.g. The Darling River Run) and the Year of The Outback. It will tell the histories, contemporary stories, and issues of the area. It will highlight aspects of interest in small communities, towns, properties and special sites along the river. Most of all, it will expose the characters and the lives of the people of the Western Division and allow them to take their place in the rich tapestry of the vast Australian icon known as 'The Outback'.

The 'River Roads' project will be initiated throughout 2002, Year of The Outback, and beyond. Stories, tales and anecdotes will be collected from a series of interviews and recordings made during field trips to various locations along the proposed route (Brewarrina to Menindee). The material will then be sorted, edited and distributed among the participating artists. Original writings and compositions will be created with, from and around the stories, this will be recorded and a narrative will emerge from the songs and the 'documentary style' recorded material. The final product will be printed and produced in an easily accessible format (e.g. CD), and widely distributed to not only generate revenue, but also promote the region.

There is an interesting tale that highlights the wealth of material out there to write about. When this project was originally discussed, Tonchi and Andrew estimated finding approximately 5-6 worthwhile stories in each town, which could perhaps result in 2-3 songs or poems. On a trip to Louth to test the water late last year, they uncovered at least 10 stories worthy of retelling and just one of these stories has resulted in 6 songs which will be included on the 'Fire Stone' album

The river roads project will achieve a number of worthwhile outcomes in its completion. The first goal is to produce an interesting and entertaining product that will hold its own commercially. This is vital to the success of the project as the stories will only be heard and passed on if they are worth listening to. Many people will be interested in the idea of the project, but if that means they have to force themselves to listen for the sake of it, then they certainly won't have any further interest in this area, and many of these great stories will be lost because the telling was not up to standard.

Even though the project is relatively small, it will generate some revenue for the area in it's creation as there will be a good deal of traveling involved. This means meals, fuel, accommodation etc for the towns and farm stays involved. There are also production, promotion and distribution duties to perform, as well as a launch, all of which generate income and interest for and in the area.

In addition to the immediate benefits, this project will provide long term return for the Darling River region by generating interest, thereby visitors and the tourist dollar. One of the original goals set down for the project was to create a CD that travelers could have in their car as they tour the region, telling of special places and sites, prompting them to visit and stay at these places.

It should be clear, however, that what we are talking about is a worthwhile arts project that has its own merit and is not merely driven by tourism and regional promotion.

Further to the proposed format (CD) this project would lend itself to many mediums. The wonderful outback images that can only be touched upon with words can easily be captured on film and the stories are as good as you will find anywhere. There is potential for radio programs, books, films, television programs, theatre, musical performance, virtually any form of media could be used to convey these stories, all of which generate income and all of which promote the region.

Perhaps the best way to sum up the project is to perform it, so I would urge you to take the time to have a listen to the music, get yourself a CD, make your interest known to the artists. It is the reader and listener of stories that is important, not the teller.

See you on the river road.

Andrew Hull
hully@bushroots.com